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Service Learning

Pu’u Wa‘awa‘a Ahupua’a Service Learning Field Excursion 
DATE: August 7th, 2015 from  8 AM – 5 PM
DEADLINE: July 20, 2015
CONTACT: Tara Seely, tseely@hawaii.edu
COST: No transportation costs; participants will be responsible for their own lunch/snack costs
PICKUP/DROPOFF LOCATION: Institute of Pacific Island Forestry (IPIF), 60 Nowelo Street, Hilo HI 96720

Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a ahupua‘a, located in North Kona on Hawai‘i island, is ~39,000 acres and is a mix of tropical dry and moist forests, mixed savanna, and exotic dominated grasslands across an elevational range spanning from sea-level to almost 6,500 ft.  Tropical dry forests are considered among the most endangered forest types in the world, and in Hawai‘i the few remaining remnants are severely threatened by wildfire, non-native and invasive species, and climate change.  Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a is also a unit of the Hawai‘i Experimental Tropical Forest (HETF), which is a collaboration between the Hawai‘i Division of Forestry and Wildlife and the USDA Forest Service to cooperatively administer education, research, management, and demonstration projects within the HETF.

Trip participants will learn about management tools being used to protect and restore tropical dry forests though a hands-on service learning project by planting native trees in a dryland forest restoration area.  Participants will also visit an ongoing research project that is exploring the best microhabitats for native plant restoration in the area.

Transportation will be provided from Hilo to the service learning site at Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a and then return to Hilo. Trip time: 8 AM – 5 PM.  Participants should plan to wear long pants and close-toed shoes or boots as well as sun protection, water and lunch. Participants should plan to bring their own lunch. Organizers will consider facilitating a pack lunch pre-order if this is needed by participants.

Registration for this excursion is handled independently from your HCC registration. Contact Tara Seely (tseely@hawaii.edu) to register or if you have additional questions. Tara will confirm whether or not space is still available. Registration for this excursion will close on July 20, 2015.

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